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Tilefish! Rudee Inlet 3/23/13, Sat

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  • Tilefish! Rudee Inlet 3/23/13, Sat

    I was scheduled for this Deep Drop trip out of Rudee Inlet five times since January, and all were cancelled due to weather. So, I finally got to go yesterday.

    We departed after 3 am Saturday on the Rudee Angler with over 30 anglers onboard. There was also a second boat with about the same number of anglers. Target fish for most anglers was big tilefish.

    It turned out to be a nice day. Mostly sunny with winds about 10-15 knots. Seas were not rough at all, maybe two feet. Air temp was about 50 deg, not cold at all.

    We rode over 5 hours to get to our first fishing spot. With squid on our double and triple hook rigs, we fished in about 300 feet of water with 24 ounce sinkers. We caught and released lots of dogfish (shark) and black sea bass. After about half an hour, we pulled up and went to another spot. Depending on the catch at a spot, we'd fish, go to another spot, fish and go to another spot. We did this at least a half dozen times. We fished a spot anywhere from about 20 min up to an hour or so.

    Turned out the fish-and-move strategy worked well. Everybody caught fish. We caught golden tilefish, dogfish, black sea bass and bluefish. Everyone had pretty much full coolers at the end of the day.

    At the second fishing spot, I was pulling up a pretty heavy load. I could feel the head jerks as I cranked hard on my new Penn Fathom reel and boat rod. I was thinking it was a pesky dogfish. When it finally surfaced, wow, it was a blueline tilefish double. The mate used a gaff to it. I was so excited to catch my first big tilefish, and on a double too. The tiles measured 30" and 23". The larger one turned out to be a citation at 11.1 lbs (citation min is 10 lbs).

    When we started to cruise out of the inlet I walked around the deck. Wow, I saw a lot of impressive gear. I'd say about 40% of the combos along the rails were electrics. This one guy explained his digital display and computer reel unit that monitors tension and adjusts torque. One group of anglers (3) all brought new electrics. Another fellow talked about his recent conversion to electrics. I can see the popularity. Cranking up fish (or your rig for even a bait check) on a manual conventional unit can be done fairly easily, but try doing it a hundred times in deep water. My arms were really tired toward the later half of the day. Another fellow and I commented to each other, "I hope the Captain doesn't take us to deeper water," "I dread doing all that work only to find a dogfish at the end of the line," and "Do I really want to drop the rig at this spot with the prospects of hooking up a shark?" We fished 300 to nearly 500 feet.

    It almost seemed like a long day. At one point, I had a fleeting thought that I had enough of fishing/catching (Am I nuts to think like that?). Anyway, we were back at the dock about 9 pm. A lot of guys went to the scale for weigh in. The fellow on my boat (pic with fish on his lap) won the fish pool with a blueline tilefish over 18 lbs! Another fellow on the other boat also had an eighteen pounder. Some guys took their catches to the cleaning station. Most anglers took their fish straight home.

    Overall, a great trip for my first time on a deep drop out of Rudee Inlet. Weather was great and everybody took home full coolers of fish.
    Attached Files
    Last edited by tufnik; 03-26-2013, 03:13 PM.
    2015 Hobie Outback (yellow)
    2011 Hobie Outback (yellow)
    2009 OK Prowler Trident 13 Angler (orange)

  • #3
    wow, what a trip! Congrats on the Golden Tiles!
    <insert witty comment here>

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    • #4
      Nice job on the tilefish. I'm glad you were able to get out and try some new spots.
      John Veil
      Annapolis
      Native Watercraft Manta Ray 11, Falcon 11

      Author - "Fishing in the Comfort Zone" , "Fishing Road Trip - 2019", "My Fishing Life: Two Years to Remember", and "The Way I Like to Fish -- A Kayak Angler's Guide to Shallow Water, Light Tackle Fishing"

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      • #5
        I am glad that your FINALLY got to go Tufnik and I am glad that I did not stear you in the wronge direction. I have been going every year, since I found out about this trip on the Rudee. I typically plan to go the week/weekend between Christmas and Newyear, since you can still catch both Black Seabass which I love and Tilefish. If I get blown out, then we normally reschedule for the first weekend in January when we can get both species still. Anyone is welcome to come next time in Dec 2013. I still have fish in my freezer form the prior trip.

        Let me know how you like the Tilefish and how you prepared it. I am looking for some nice ways to cook a tilefish.

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        • #6
          Originally posted by moc View Post
          I am glad that your FINALLY got to go Tufnik and I am glad that I did not stear you in the wronge direction. I have been going every year, since I found out about this trip on the Rudee. I typically plan to go the week/weekend between Christmas and Newyear, since you can still catch both Black Seabass which I love and Tilefish. If I get blown out, then we normally reschedule for the first weekend in January when we can get both species still. Anyone is welcome to come next time in Dec 2013. I still have fish in my freezer form the prior trip.

          Let me know how you like the Tilefish and how you prepared it. I am looking for some nice ways to cook a tilefish.
          Moc,
          If you didn't tell me about this trip, I would not have tried it. You're right, it's a great trip. That monster sea bass you caught on this Rudee boat a few months ago only fired me up. Too bad I missed the trip with you and your brother-in-law. I hope to join you later this year.

          We prepared the tile like we prepared all fish for the first time. It's a simple process: just coat the fillets with flour, salt, and pepper, then fry it. That way I taste mainly the fish without too much other ingredients, sauces, etc. to mask the fish taste. Tilefish is quite tasty, but not as good as black sea bass. As an added taste option, I may eat fish with a Vietnamese fish sauce (bottle fish sauce, vinegar, chili pepper, sugar) recipe found on the internet.
          2015 Hobie Outback (yellow)
          2011 Hobie Outback (yellow)
          2009 OK Prowler Trident 13 Angler (orange)

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          • #7
            love tilefish......way to go, Tuf. Bet that double was like pulling up a boulder!
            14.5 ft Sand colored Malibu X-Factor "the promise"
            2010 Hobie Outback "the Gift Horse II"

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            • #8
              Wooohoooo Tufnik!! Some niiiiiceeeee pullage! I have never had Tilefish, have you cooked some yet? How much did the trip set you back?

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              • #9
                Congrats on the nice fish, and thanks for sharing!
                Ryan
                Blue 2016 Hobie Outback
                Chesapeake Bay Kayak Anglers, Inc

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                • #10
                  WTG Tufnik. How did you like your new reel?

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                  • #11
                    Looks like you had a blast! Thanks for the pictures.
                    2012 Hobie Revo 13'
                    2012 Hobie PA12'

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                    • #12
                      MYTM,
                      This 17-hour trip put me back $200, but I think it's worth it. As Moc pointed out to me, it's among the cheapest for this long a trip. The Captain did a great job of putting us on fish. The mates were great too - helpful, friendly and hard-working. I met some new friends there, and it was fun chatting with them. I may do the trip again soon.

                      Fourstep,
                      My new Fathom 40 did well, but I think I prefer level-wind. During the later part of the day, especially when you're a bit tired and need to crank the rig up, it'll be much easier to not have to worry about guiding the line evenly on the reel. I guess that should be automatic as you gain experience. I do like the high 6.1 gear ratio, but it still requires pump and crank technique to bring the rig up. I'm thinking about getting a 2-speed reel. We fished up to 500 ft, and that involved harding crankin' work! So, a 2-speeder would help. If we went to over 900 ft, which the Captain does every now and then, I'd probably be cussin' at the Captain....lol. What about electric? Naahh, I'm not quite ready for that yet.
                      2015 Hobie Outback (yellow)
                      2011 Hobie Outback (yellow)
                      2009 OK Prowler Trident 13 Angler (orange)

                      Comment


                      • #13
                        Yeah, on my first trip ever, the Captain did go into 900 feet, and it was a pain pulling up a fish, just to find out that it was a dogshark. We did not stay in the 900 feet very long. 300 feet was the best for us on that day. MY brother-in-law and I had a 100 quart cooler that was full. We estimated with a cheap scale that the fish weighed 50 pounds after we fillet them. Estimating the price for black seabass fillets if 6.99 to 8.99 per pound at the store, that would yield a maximum of $449.50 of Black Seabass and Tilefish Fillets. Not bad, considering you get a boat ride with tons of fishing time. What we caught almost paid for our trip.

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                        • #14
                          I see why those guys rock the electric reels... I couldn't imagine having to do all that reeling!! WHEW! LOL How much weight did you use to get down?

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                          • #15
                            He said they used 24 ozs

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